Tucson medical marijuana dispensary cooks up edible medicine

TUCSON - One of Tucson's new medical marijuana dispensaries has been cleared to operate a kitchen for producing cannabis-infused edibles.

The Green Halo Dispensary was the second dispensary to open it's doors in Tucson, officially opening on January 1. It has now become the first to operate its own kitchen to produce medicinal candies, chocolates, brownies, cookies, cakes and even buffalo wing hot sauce.

For the the dispensary staff, it was a long time coming as they prepared for at least six months to get the kitchen up to par for state approval.

"There's a stereotypical feel about what smoking marijuana is, and using cannabis-infused products is a much gentler way to use the medicine," said Heather Manus, who is a registered nurse and operating the kitchen.

Manus said that edible medicines provide an appeal for some patients who prefer not to smoke. That's something Scott Wright can get on baord with, as he looks forward to the Green Halo offering an edible option for him to manage his chronic arthritis pain.

"The pain control is remarkable," Wright told News 4 Tucson. "I could eat a couple cookies a day and I'm fine the whole day, it's not even smoking. I can walk into a mall or anything and be just eating a cookie and taking my medicine."

That discretion is one of the reasons Manus hopes to go beyond the boundaries of Tucson with her kitchen work.

"It seems as if all the patients in Arizona are wanting these products and we want to get those out to them as soon as possible," Manus told News 4 Tucson.

"So at this point we're looking to fill other dispensaries in the state so that they can offer those products to their patients as well," Manus said.

The edible medicine line will officially go on sale when the Green Halo Dispensary doors open on Saturday January 12 at 10 a.m.